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Construction equipment and services provider Sandvik Construction South Africa introduced its new CH550 cone crusher in September last year.

Sandvik Construction Sub-Saharan Africa VP Glenn Schoeman tells Engineering News that the CH550 provides operators with superior performance at every crushing stage and has an optimal reduction ratio in relation to the size and weight of waste materials that are loaded into the crusher.

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He explains that cone crushers are suitable for secondary and tertiary crushing in direct-feed applications and can be used to reduce the size or change the form of waste materials, making their disposal or recycling easier.

Schoeman adds that the cone crushers can also be used to reduce the size of a solid mix of raw materials, such as rock ore, to allow for differentiation among pieces that vary in composition.

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epending on the application for which it is required, one CH550 cone crusher can undertake the same amount of work that two CH440 cone crushers – the previous model – could perform.

Moreover, the CH550’s automatic setting system enables the crusher to run at maximum performance levels, safely providing optimal operational uptime. The crusher also allows for effective power transfer, owing to its new drive arrangements that provide a precise lining of the machine’s V-belts.

“Sandvik has significantly reduced its machines’ operating costs by introducing the IE3 premium efficiency standard motors and developing the crushers’ internal design in the last five years. “Comparing the standard efficiency IE1 motors to IE3 premium efficiency motors, the additional cost of the motor is recouped in less than a year,” Schoeman says.

He adds that the enhanced motor ensures a high performance every minute, enabling increased use of motor power.

The internal bearings in the crusher have also been improved, resulting in less friction to reduce overall energy consumption.

The CH550 comprises a 330 kW motor, a feed size of 215 mm, seven chambers, a throw range of 28 mm to 52 mm, with a total crusher subframe weight of 22 900 kg.

DI550 Drill Rig

Business line manager: surface drills and tunnelling Andre Blom notes that Sandvik has sold nine of its DI550 down-the-hole (DTH) surface hydraulic drill rigs to local construction companies since introducing the machine onto the Southern African market in December 2012.

The DI550 drill includes a 328 kW engine; a hole diameter ranging from 90 mm to 165 mm; drill pipes of 76 mm, 89 mm, 102 mm and 114 mm; DTH hammers of 76.2 mm, 101.6 mm and 127 mm; and a production capacity of 1.85-million tons a year.

Blom points out that the DI550 is currently used in several construction projects in the Brits area, in the North West, and in Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, as well as in Zimbabwe.

Further, Blom explains that the DI550 is a diesel-powered, self-contained crawler-mounted drilling rig, designed for DTH blast-hole drilling in the mining, quarry and construction industries.

“The drill is equipped with an operator’s cabin, a fixed boom, a dry dust collector and a drill-pipe changer. The design and layout are done according to the latest state-of-the-art design systems,” he enthuses.

Blom adds that the drills are equipped with ergonomically designed cabins, as well as roll-over and falling object protection systems.

“The DI550 has been designed to drill at optimum efficiencies, resulting in large-scale savings in fuel costs,” he states.

Challenges in Industry

Blom says that, in his opinion, marketing and selling of construction equipment are constrained by construction companies’ overall resistance to use the new technologies that are on offer.

“However, Sandvik acknowledges that Africa is an emerging market and companies are gradually realising the advantages of using automated technologies in the construction and mining industries.”